Marko Arnautovic came off the bench to score the winning goal as Inter Milan defeated Atletico Madrid 1-0 at the San Siro in the first leg of their Champions League last-16 tie.

The substitute fired home on the rebound with 11 minutes to play after Lautaro Martinez had been denied when racing through on goal by goalkeeper Jan Oblak, squeezing it inside the near post as Samuel Lino tried gallantly to clear from the goal line.

Earlier, Arnautovic and Martinez had wasted the two best chances of the game for the hosts, failing to find the target from good positions, as Diego Simeone’s side threatened to make it a frustrating night for the Serie A leaders.

For the visitors, Alvaro Morata headed wide from six yards out in the final minutes after getting on the end of Angel Correa’s deep cross.

Elsewhere, PSV Eindhoven came from behind to claim a 1-1 draw in their last-16 first leg against Borussia Dortmund.

Former PSV forward Donyell Malen scored after 24 minutes with a shot that deflected in at the near post beyond goalkeeper Walter Benitez.

But the Bundesliga side were denied the chance to take a one-goal advantage back to Germany when Luuk de Jong levelled from the penalty spot 11 minutes after the break.

Marcus Thuram inspired a strong second-half fightback as Inter Milan extended their lead at the top of Serie A to seven points with a 4-2 win over Roma at the Stadio Olimpico.

Thuram flicked home from a Matteo Darmian cross four minutes after the break then pressured Roma defender Angelino into turning a ball from the left into his own net six minutes later.

Roma pressed desperately for an equaliser, but Inter made sure of the points deep into stoppage time when defender Alessandro Bastoni finished off a swift counter-attack.

Victory allowed Inter to build on their crucial win over title rivals Juventus last week, while it spelled a first defeat for new Roma head coach Daniele De Rossi after three straight wins.

Seeking another win that would send them up to fourth, Roma started with confidence, and Inter goalkeeper Yann Sommer had to tip over a shot from Stephan El Shaarawy inside the opening minute.

Matias Pellegrini also came close from distance, but Inter grew into the game and grabbed the lead in the 18th minute when Federico Dimarco’s corner was headed home by Francesco Acerbi.

But Roma were level within 10 minutes when Gianluca Mancini nodded home from a free-kick, with set-plays proving dangerous for both sides in the slippery conditions.

An end-to-end clash saw chances for Dimarco and Paulo Dybala at both ends before the hosts stunned Inter by grabbing the lead moments before the half-time break.

Pellegrini led a sweeping counter-attack that sent the ball out to El Shaarawy on the left flank and his rising shot clattered against both posts before nestling in the net to put Roma 2-1 up.

Inter responded strongly at the start of the second half and it took them only four minutes to level when Thuram met Darmian’s cross with the neatest of finishes.

Angelino was unfortunate to divert the next past his own keeper after 56 minutes and Inter were intent on pressing home their advantage with Benjamin Pavard striking the post with a fine shot moments later.

Roma’s best chance to give an engrossing game one final twist came in the 71st minute when former Inter man Romelu Lukaku was played clean through, but had the ball picked off his feet by the alert Sommer.

It sparked a grandstand finish from the home side with Sommer having to be on his toes again to tip away an effort from Leonardo Spinazzola with six minutes left on the clock.

But Roma’s increasing desperation left holes at the back and the visitors confirmed victory after a thrilling game through the unlikely figure of Bastoni.

Inter Milan moved four points clear at the top of Serie A with a 1-0 win over title rivals Juventus 1-0 in the Derby d’Italia at the San Siro.

The Nerazzurri made the breakthrough just before half-time when Juve defender Federico Gatti diverted a cross into his own net.

Juve keeper Wojciech Szczesny produced a fine late save from Inter substitute Marko Arnautovic as Simone Inzaghi’s men put themselves firmly in the driving seat for the Scudetto.

Charles De Ketelaere scored twice as Atalanta consolidated their place in the top four with a 3-1 win over Lazio at the Gewiss Stadium.

Napoli came from behind to beat Verona 2-1 and close back up on the top six.

Cyril Ngonge scored against his former club to equalise after Diego Coppola’s opener with 20 minutes left before a fine strike from Khvicha Kvaratskhelia in the closing stages completed the turnaround.

Bottom club Salernitana fought out a goalless draw at Torino, but remain five points adrift of safety.

Real Madrid missed the chance to extend their lead at the top of LaLiga after derby rivals Atletico Madrid scored a stoppage-time equaliser to snatch a 1-1 draw at the Bernabeu.

Girona were held to a 0-0 draw at home by Sociedad on Saturday, but Carlo Ancelotti’s men could not make the most of their opportunity which could have sent them four points clear.

Brahim Diaz – drafted into the side after Vinicius Junior suffered a problem during the warm-up, so started on the bench – put Real ahead from close range after 20 minutes.

Atletico saw Stefan Savic’s goal early in the second half ruled out by VAR for offside, but eventually were level through a looping header from Marcos Llorente in the third minute of added time to leave the home fans stunned.

Celta Vigo had earlier edged clear of the bottom three with a 3-0 win at Osasuna, while fellow relegation-battlers Cadiz picked up a point from a goalless draw at Villarreal.

Real Betis and Getafe drew 1-1 at the Estadio Benito Villamarin. Mason Greenwood put the visitors ahead through an early penalty before Isco’s spot-kick levelled things up ahead of the break.

RB Leipzig ended a three-game Bundesliga losing streak to get their top-four challenge back on track with a 2-0 win over Union Berlin, who finished with 10 men.

Lois Openda and Benjamin Sesko were on target either side of half-time, before Union captain Christopher Trimmel was shown a straight red card with 20 minutes left.

Lovro Majer scored twice in the second half as Wolfsburg came from behind to draw 2-2 against Hoffenheim at the Volkswagen Arena.

 

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In Ligue 1, Canada forward Jonathan David scored twice as Lille comfortably beat Clermont 4-0 at Stade Pierre-Mauroy to keep up their top-four challenge ahead of Monaco, who drew 1-1 with Le Havre.

Second-placed Nice and Brest, who are third, cancelled each other out in a goalless draw at Stade Francis-Le Ble.

In Sunday’s late match, Alexandre Lacazette was on target with his 10th league goal as relegation-battlers Lyon beat Marseille 1-0 to move three points clear of the drop zone.

Panos Katseris’ second-half goal helped secure Lorient a 2-1 victory at fellow strugglers Metz, while Toulouse held off a second-half fightback to win 3-2 at Reims.

Liverpool announced the signing of Brazilian forward Philippe Coutinho from Inter Milan on this day in 2013.

The 20-year-old became manager Brendan Rodgers’ second signing of the January transfer window after finalising the details of his medical and work permit.

Coutinho was on his fourth club – all in different countries – in three years, but having spoken at length with compatriot and new team-mate Lucas Leiva, he was confident he would adapt to life on Merseyside.

“I’ve been talking to him for some time and he said good things about Liverpool,” said the midfielder, who began his career with Vasco da Gama before moving to Inter, who loaned him to Espanyol.

“He believes this might be a nice club for me and now it’s happening. I’m very confident and excited to come and start to train with the team and be available to the manager.

“I’ve been playing in Italy for two and a half years and I believe I will adapt with ease here.

“I’m feeling very happy, it’s a very important step in my career and I’m expecting to come here and play good football to give my contribution on the pitch.

“Liverpool is a great club with great players. We’ve always heard about Liverpool’s history in Brazil.

“They are the club that have been interested in me and that have showed this interest so I know they believe in me and my football.”

Coutinho went on to make 201 appearances for the Reds, scoring 54 goals, before he was sold to Barcelona for £130million in 2018.

Now 31, he currently plays for Qatari club Al Duhail, on loan from Aston Villa.

Inter Milan’s fine season continued as they moved back to the Serie A summit after in-form Lautaro Martinez hit the only goal of the game to down Fiorentina.

It was a 22nd goal of the campaign for Martinez, who raced to the near-post to head home Kristjan Aslani’s 14th-minute corner.

Nico Gonzalez saw a second-half penalty saved as Inter secured the three points with a 1-0 win that extends their unbeaten run to 15 games.

Simone Inzaghi’s side have now 17 of their 21 Serie A games this season – equalling their previous record at this stage, set in 2006/07 under Roberto Mancini as they went on to win the league by 22 points.

Carlos Augusto thought he had given the visitors the lead with a close-range finish but was denied by brilliant defending by Davide Faraoni.

But Martinez would turn home the resulting corner, glancing a near-post header in after he had easily slipped the attention of his marker.

The Argentina World Cup winner had proved to be the match-winner last time out – his injury-time effort sealing a 1-0 win over Napoli in the Italian Super Cup final in Saudi Arabia.

Marcus Thuram could not sort his feet out when played through on goal as Inter looked to build on their lead before Yann Sommer made a fine stop to prevent Giacomo Bonaventura levelling for the home side.

Inter thought they had doubled their but had a goal ruled out for offside as Marko Arnautovic turned home from a Henrikh Mkhitaryan pass, only for the flag to go up against the Armenia international.

Fiorentina were handed a lifeline when they were awarded a controversial penalty following a lengthy VAR check for a foul against Sommer.

The Switzerland goalkeeper had punched away a cross but caught M’Bala Nzola in the face with his fist and the video assistant referee flagged the incident to the onfield official.

A spot-kick was duly awarded but Sommer would make amends as Gonzalez – on as a substitute as he returned from injury – hit a tame spot-kick that was easily saved.

It proved to be the best chance the hosts would have in attempting to rescue a result, while Inter moved back above Juventus to the summit.

Juve visit the San Siro next Sunday with just one point separating the two sides at the top of Serie A – the pair having drawn 1-1 in Turin earlier this season.

Christian Eriksen signed for Inter Milan from Tottenham for a fee in the region of £17million on this day in 2020.

The Denmark international joined Inter on a four-and-a-half-year deal following six-and-a-half years with Spurs, where he scored 69 goals and provided 89 assists in 305 appearances.

Following his departure, Eriksen posted on X, formerly Twitter: “Dear Tottenham fans, I don’t know where to start!

“I didn’t have time to say goodbye to everyone, even though I felt like I played a lot of games where everyone said and thought I would be gone the next day.

“I have so many unbelievable memories over the last 6.5 years I was at Spurs.

“I enjoyed being at the training ground every day and playing games in the stadium so much, but sometimes you just want to try something new.

“So, Spurs fans it has been a pleasure to play at your club and hopefully we meet again in the future.”

Eriksen won a Serie A title with Inter, but left the club in December 2021 after suffering a cardiac arrest at Euro 2020 during Denmark’s opener against Finland.

After receiving life-saving treatment on the pitch, he was taken to hospital and fitted with an implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD) device.

Serie A rules stated that Eriksen would be unable to play with an ICD and an agreement was struck for him to leave.

He then signed for Brentford on a six-month deal in January 2022 before joining Manchester United that summer.

Inter Milan beat Napoli to win the Italian Super Cup after both teams paid tribute to Italy’s all-time top scorer Gigi Riva.

Lautaro Martinez scored the winner in injury time as Inter wrapped up a third straight Super Cup success.

But the match, held in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, between current Serie A champions Napoli and Coppa Italia holders Inter, was overshadowed by Riva’s death, aged 79.

A minute’s applause was held before the second half after the news filtered through during the first half.

Riva scored 35 goals in 42 appearances for Italy and was a member of the squad which won the 1968 European Championship and lost in the 1970 World Cup final to Brazil.

He was also a prolific goalscorer for Cagliari, leading the Sardinian club to their only Serie A title in 1970.

It appeared that no one was going to find a goal to settle the match, until Martinez finally broke the deadlock two minutes into added time.

Inter dominated the first half and created the first chance when a long Matteo Darmian throw-in found its way through to Federico Dimarco, whose volley was deflected inches wide.

Martinez then headed wide from Francesco Acerbi’s cross and Henrikh Mkhitaryan fired over 20 yards out.

Martinez had the ball in the net after 40 minutes when he tapped in Marcus Thuram’s cross but an offside flag curtailed any celebrations.

Napoli’s first real opening came six minutes into the second half when Stanislav Lobotka fed Khvicha Kvaratskhelia.

The Georgian cut back inside and tried to curl the ball towards the far post but his effort was beaten away by Inter keeper Yann Sommer.

Napoli were reduced to 10 men on the hour after Giovanni Simeone was shown a second yellow card for a foul on Acerbi.

Inter set about trying to press home their numerical advantage but Thuram twice missed his kick in front of goal and Martinez volleyed over the crossbar.

Frustrated Napoli coach Walter Mazzarri was shown a yellow card before Mkhitaryan tried his luck again, only to send his shot too high.

The match looked destined for penalties until Alexis Sanchez fed Benjamin Pavard down the right.

Pavard pinged in a low cross which was swept home by Martinez to wrap up a super treble for Inter.

Inter Milan head coach Simone Inzaghi is aware of the potential pitfalls facing his team in their Supercoppa Italiana final showdown with Napoli in Riyadh as the Nerazzurri look to make a statement with a mid-season trophy.

Inzaghi’s went into the weekend leading the Serie A table by two points from Juventus and they breezed into Monday’s cup tournament decider in the Saudi Arabian capital by dispatching Lazio 3-0 on Friday.

Standing in their way are Scudetto holders Napoli, who also won 3-0 – against Fiorentina – to give themselves a confidence boost with their league form desperately poor compared to their swashbuckling final season under Luciano Spalletti.

The more pragmatic Walter Mazzarri is now in charge of the Azzurri and there will be a definite clash of styles in Riyadh as attack-minded Inzaghi looks to secure Inter their eighth Super Cup and third in succession.

“A final is often decided in a few moments – you have to be very careful,” the Nerazzurri boss told inter.it. “We’re playing against the Italian champions who won 3-0 in their own semi-final.

“They’ve had some problems in the league but they have a lot of quality, with a deep squad.

“Napoli have changed their formation, before they were a possession team but now they are less so. If Mazzarri keeps his line-up from the semi-final then we’ll be ready for that. Beyond formation and tactics, though, motivation is vital.”

On Inter’s and his own fine record in the Super Cup – he has won five overall as player and coach – Inzaghi added: “Winning it three times in a row has only happened once before. We won it in a derby (against AC Milan) last year, two years ago against Juve, and now we would like to beat Napoli to it.

“I care more about Inter than my own record. It would be nice to win it of course. The boys have been putting Inter before their own interests since the summer and that’s the secret to a good team.”

Napoli boss Mazzarri hopes winning the Super Cup will give his players an incentive to revive their ailing domestic campaign and qualify for the Champions League.

He told La Gazzetta dello Sport: “This is a bunch of good young guys who need to understand that an opportunity like this might not happen again – and that should drive them on.

“I believe we will face an Inter team who are currently at their best. It will be very tough but, also for that reason, winning would give us even more confidence for the future.”

Jens Cajuste and Khvicha Kvaratskhelia are both suspended for Napoli, who are also missing star striker Victor Osimhen due to Africa Cup of Nations commitments.

Inter are in better shape with only Taty Castellanos sitting the fixture out due to injury.

Simone Inzaghi has challenged his Inter Milan players to lift the Supercoppa Italiana for a third straight season as they take on the new format for the first time.

The competition has been expanded to four teams, with the runners-up from both Serie A and the Coppa Italia added to the mix.

With all games being played in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, Coppa Italia holders Inter will face Serie A runners-up Lazio on Friday, with the winner advancing to play either league champions Napoli or cup runners-up Fiorentina.

“The Supercoppa is the first objective of the season,” Inzaghi said. “Inter won it in the last two years and we want to win it again. We’ll do our best.

“We have another training session and I need to make careful assessments (on the squad). Everyone was available yesterday, except (Juan) Cuadrado. I have to make decisions, being a final played over two legs.

“Now, I am only thinking about the Lazio game. I am serene, Inter have the same ambitions as Lazio, Napoli and Fiorentina. Tomorrow, we meet an undefeated team in the last five, and it has always caused trouble for us.”

Lautaro Martinez scored a brace in Inter’s 5-1 Serie A win over Monza last weekend, moving to 20 goals in all competitions for the season.

But while the Argentinian has been in sparkling form, Inter have been linked with a striker in the January window – something Inzaghi would not be drawn on.

“We have a club behind us that is thinking about it,” he said. “I am satisfied with my four strikers in the first part of the season, they are giving us great satisfaction.”

Leading the line for Lazio will be veteran forward Ciro Immobile. The 33-year-old was linked with making Saudi Arabia his permanent home last summer, but asked on Thursday if he would still be interested in joining the Saudi Pro League, he said he was fully focused on Lazio.

“(Saudi Arabia) is developing as a league, infrastructures are improving compared to 2019,” Immobile said.

“Now, everyone has their eyes set on Saudi Arabia and believes there will be an important league here in the future. I spoke to local clubs in the past, but nothing happened in the end. I’ve always tried to be as transparent as possible and I decided to stay at Lazio and carry the project forward.”

Immobile was a late substitute in Lazio’s 1-0 win over Lecce as he comes back from injury.

“We feel the weight of the game,” he added. “It’s a trophy with two finals that are played within three days. There is little time to prepare for all matches. We are proud and happy with what we did last season and want to enjoy this moment.

“I was sidelined for three weeks, but playing 15 minutes against Lecce was important. I’ve had the chance to train and work to return to the top. We only lacked consistency, but the team has always worked well. Sometimes things didn’t work, but we’ve been improving.”

Inter Milan extended their lead at the top of Serie A to five points after Davide Frattesi sealed a dramatic late 2-1 win over Verona at the San Siro.

Inter looked set to have to settle for a draw after an early strike from Lautaro Martinez was cancelled out by Thomas Henry in the 74th minute.

But in a wild finish, Frattesi netted in the third minute of added time with a goal Verona claimed should have been disallowed for an earlier foul by Alessandro Bastoni.

Verona’s Darko Lazovic was sent off for protesting to the referee, but there was still time for the visitors to win a penalty in the 10th minute of added time, which Henry duly fired against a post.

In an equally action-packed clash at Frosinone, Monza ended a run of three games without a win as they clung on for a 3-2 victory over the hosts, who fought back from three goals down but had Pierluigi Frattali sent off in the 75th minute.

Fiorentina’s run of three straight wins came to a jolting end at Sassuolo, for whom Andrea Pinamonti’s ninth minute strike proved enough to end a run of six league games without a victory.

Cagliari remain rooted in the relegation zone despite Gaetano Oristanio’s 68th-minute effort salvaging a point in a 1-1 draw at Lecce, who led through Valentin Gendrey’s first-half opener.

Real Madrid had to be patient before seeing off fourth-tier Arandina in the last 32 of the Copa del Rey, with Joselu, Brahim Diaz and Rodrygo all scoring in the second half.

The hosts grabbed a late consolation through a Nacho own goal to make the final score 3-1 in a game that was also notable for the long-awaited debut of Real’s 18-year-old Arda Guler.

Two goals in the last half hour from Memphis Depay spared Atletico Madrid’s blushes as they edged to a 3-1 win at third-tier Lugo.

The hosts had briefly threatened to cause an upset when Leandro Antonelli cancelled out Angel Correa’s early strike for the visitors.

Goals from Daley Blind and Yan Couto saw Girona emerge unscathed with a 2-0 win at Segunda Division side Elche, while there were also wins for Getafe, Alaves and Real Vallecano.

Golden Lion’s 8,000-mile round trip to face Ligue 1 Lille turned sour as they were mauled 12-0 in the Coupe de France.

The Martinique champions, one of a number of teams from overseas territories eligible to play in the competition, were swept aside with both Jonathan David and Edon Zhegova scoring hat-tricks.

Third tier Sochaux pulled off a shock 2-1 win over Ligue 1 strugglers Lorient thanks to an added time penalty from Issouf Macalou.

Nice needed penalties to see off second-tier Auxerre after a goalless draw, while Brest edged past Angers and there were wins for Montpellier and Strasbourg over lower-tier opposition.

Verona’s Thomas Henry missed a last-gasp penalty in a dramatic finish at San Siro as Serie A leaders Inter hung on to a 2-1 victory.

Henry had cancelled out Lautaro Martinez’s 13th-minute opener with 16 minutes left only for Davide Frattesi to apparently win the game for the hosts in injury time.

However, a lengthy VAR check saw Verona, who had Darko Lazovic sent off, awarded a penalty, from which the unfortunate Henry struck a post.

Inter have never lost at home to Verona but it was the visitors who created the first real chance, Cyril Ngonge playing the ball in from the right for Tomas Suslov, who was still at a tight angle when he sent in a shot that was blocked by keeper Yann Sommer.

Inter, looking to return to winning ways after drawing with Genoa, scored the opener from their first real opening, carving the Verona defence apart.

Marcus Thuram’s deft touch played in Henrikh Mkhitaryan, who drove towards the edge of the box before teeing up Martinez for a comfortable finish into the bottom corner.

Inter continued to have most of the possession for the remainder of the first half but their final ball was disappointing and the best chance fell to Verona’s Milan Djuric, whose header was straight at Sommer.

Martinez thought he had scored a second for Inter three minutes into the second half, finding the net after Francesco Acerbi had headed on Mkhitaryan’s free-kick, but the linesman’s flag denied him.

There did not appear to be a great deal of threat from Verona until Henry scored the equaliser with his first touch after coming off the bench.

Marko Arnautovic wanted a foul for a challenge from Giangiacomo Magnani but the referee played on and Ondrej Duda’s cross from the right flew past Sommer off Henry’s knee.

Inter immediately set about trying to restore their lead and came agonisingly close in the 79th minute. A free-kick clipped the shoulder of Juan David Cabal, drawing a smart save from Lorenzo Montipo, with the ball just evading Arnautovic at the back post.

A frustrated Martinez then sent a header straight at the keeper while Arnautovic was unable to get his head on Acerbi’s high cross with the goal gaping.

But three minutes into injury time, Inter found the goal they craved. Alessandro Bastoni’s thunderous volley struck the bar, Nicolo Barella followed up with a well-struck shot that Montipo could not hold and substitute Frattesi tapped in to spark jubilant scenes.

Lazovic was shown a second yellow card in the aftermath but there was still time for another big twist when a VAR review saw Matteo Darmian penalised for kicking Magnani’s foot, only for Henry to agonisingly miss the target.

Hellas Verona boss Marco Baroni insists their showdown against Serie A leaders Inter Milan is not already a foregone conclusion as his side look to keep themselves clear of the relegation zone.

The Gialloblu have lost three straight games against Inter, all without scoring a goal – and were thrashed 6-0 at home the last time the sides met in May.

Baroni, though, is looking for a positive response after his side were beaten 1-0 at home by Salernitana in their last game of 2023.

“We are going to play a match on Saturday which may be impossible on paper, but these are the matches that give us the measure of what we are,” Baroni said.

“It’s an opportunity. We know who we are playing against, but we go looking for a performance, this is what we need. I always turn difficulties into opportunities.

“We must not be distracted by something we cannot control – work can help us obtain the our objectives, the rest is of no use to us.”

Inter saw their gap over rivals Juventus closed down to two points after being held to a 1-1 draw at Genoa in their final match of 2023, but they remain unbeaten in 12 league games.

Striker Lautaro Martinez, Serie A’s top scorer with 15 goals, and defender Federico Dimarco could be available again from muscle injuries after both trained with the squad ahead of Saturday’s game.

New signing Tajon Buchanan, though, is not expected to feature.

The 24-year-old wing-back only officially completed his move from Club Brugge on Friday afternoon to become the first Canadian to play in Serie A.

“I think that it was the right decision for me at this point in my career,” Buchanan said to Inter TV.

“I have followed Inter for a while and I see myself playing in this team. I am really excited for what is to come.”

Buchanan added: “I can play in a number of roles, but my aim is just to learn as much as possible, make myself available for the team and adapt to a new style of play.

“I want to take it day by day, working hard. I want to settle in as quickly as possible and learn as much as possible from the coach, the staff and the guys that have been here for a while.”

Inter Milan dropped points for only the fourth time this season as they were held to a frustrating 1-1 draw away to Genoa on Friday.

Marko Arnautovic headed the Serie A leaders in front late in the first half, but Radu Dragusin headed the hosts level in added time before the break and Inter could not get back in front as Genoa threatened a winner in the second half.

The result leaves Inter five points clear of Juventus who host Roma on Saturday, while Genoa remain 13th.

Inter threatened just a minute into the match as Arnautovic found the run of Henrikh Mkhitaryan to set him through on goal, but the Armenian could not get his shot on target.

Josep Martinez clawed away a Marcus Thuram header before the match was held up at the quarter-hour mark, with the number of pyrotechnics being set off leaving a thick smoke cloud over the pitch.

Play eventually resumed after an eight-minute delay and Inter quickly reasserted their dominance, with Arnautovic setting up a chance for Carlos Augusto, and then shooting wide himself after the Brazilian’s effort was blocked.

The breakthrough came in the 42nd minute as Genoa struggled to deal with a long throw into the box.

Nicolo Barella’s deflected strike was pushed on to the post by Martinez, but bounced up into the path of Arnautovic who could hardly miss with an open goal in front of him.

Genoese appeals for a push by Yann Bisseck on Kevin Strootman in the build-up fell on deaf ears.

Genoa had been decidedly second best up to that point but responded well to the setback. Caleb Ekuban saw his header saved as the first half moved into stoppage time, but they drew level in the seventh of the nine added minutes.

Albert Gudmundsson sent in an outswining corner and Dragusin got great power on his header to beat Yann Sommer low to his right.

Genoa carried that momentum into the second half as they put up a much better fight and Inter grew increasingly frustrated.

Genoa were screaming for a penalty early in the second half when Johan Vasquez’s header was blocked by Bisseck, but the defender’s arms were by his side and the officials showed no interest.

Inter’s best chance of a winner came in the 67th minute when Mkhitaryan chipped a free-kick into the box and Francesco Acerbi got his head to the ball, but Martinez got down smartly to save.

At the other end, Vasquez forced a save from Sommer who then spilled the ball, offering hope to Dragusin who was harshly booked for colliding with the goalkeeper as he challenged for the loose ball.

Dragusin had a late chance to win it but headed wide as Inter were forced to settle for a point.

Inter Milan conceded twice in the last eight minutes of extra-time as their grip on the Coppa Italia came to an end with a 2-1 defeat to Bologna.

Lautaro Martinez had a penalty saved as normal time ended goalless, before Carlos Augusto headed hosts Inter into a 92nd-minute lead.

But Sam Beukema and Dan Ndoye struck in a dramatic turnaround as the back-to-back cup winners were dumped out at the quarter-final stage for the first time since the 2018-19 season.

Inter’s Marko Arnautovic tried his luck from range but his sixth-minute effort went wide in a cagey start.

Bologna responded with a chance of their own in the 18th minute when Giovanni Fabbian’s shot grazed the outside of the post.

Inter pushed for an opening but were being held off by a stubborn Bologna.

The closest they got in the first half was when Davide Frattesi went down under a challenge but his penalty appeals were waved off.

Inter came out fast after the break and came close in the 49th minute through the dangerous Fratessi.

The goalscoring midfielder lost his marker and met Alessandro Bastoni’s cross, but he failed to connect with the ball properly.

Simone Inzaghi’s side had kept four successive clean sheets prior to this match and their quality showed as their tight back three and hard working midfield stifled any Bologna attack.

But at the other end Martinez missed a golden opportunity to give Inter the lead in the 65th minute.

Bologna’s Tommaso Corazza was deemed to have handled the ball in the box following a corner but Martinez’s placed effort was saved by Federico Ravaglia.

The striker had scored 17 in all competitions up to that point and failed to add to his tally as Inter’s frustrations grew.

The Argentina international was keen to make up for his miss when he drove with the ball before shooting from range, but his shot sailed just over the Bologna crossbar.

The stalemate remained at full-time, but Inter finally broke the deadlock just two minutes into extra-time.

Federico Dimarco’s corner picked out Augusto who rose highest and nodded his effort home.

But the visitors responded eight minutes from time when Joshua Zirkzee flicked on a corner to the charging Beukema who smashed home from close range to make it 1-1.

And Bologna grabbed another in the 116th minute.

Zirkzee produced another moment of brilliance to beat his man in midfield before he threaded a pass through to Ndoye, who casually chipped Emil Audero to give his side a 2-1 win.

Inter Milan were forced to settle for second place in Champions League Group D after a 0-0 draw with leaders Real Sociedad at San Siro.

Last year’s runners-up needed a win to clinch a place among the top seeds heading into the knockout stage but could not break down their impressive Spanish opponents.

A second draw between the sides in the group stage left them locked together with 12 points, but La Real – who conceded just twice in their six matches – topped the pool on goal difference.

The draw did mean both teams kept up their impressive recent runs, with Inter having now gone 14 games without defeat.

Real Sociedad are now unbeaten in eight and have still only lost to Real Madrid, Barcelona and Atletico Madrid in all competitions this season.

And it was the visitors who dominated possession early on but, other than a couple of promising runs from Take Kubo, they failed to seriously test the visiting defence.

Inter were happy to hit on the break and they came closest to scoring in a first half of few chances.

The lively Marcus Thuram caused problems, and his surging run created an opening for Henrikh Mkhitaryan, but his goalbound effort was brilliantly cleared by Sociedad defender Hamari Traore.

Federico Dimarco then forced a save out of visiting goalkeeper Alex Remiro just before the interval.

Davide Frattesi fired over 10 minutes into the second half after La Real did not deal with a long throw, before Juan Cuadrado drove narrowly wide.

Simone Inzaghi brought on top-scorer Lautaro Martinez, midfielder Nicolo Barella and Marko Arnautovic with 25 minutes to go as Inter chased a winner which would have clinched top spot.

But they were forced into some defending five minutes later, with former Manchester United defender Matteo Darmian blocking an effort from Arsen Zakharyan before Inter goalkeeper Yann Sommer smothered Mikel Oyarzabal’s shot.

Real Sociedad thought they had a penalty with 15 minutes left when Kubo went down in the area but a VAR review led to referee Sandro Scharer overturning his decision.

Sommer had to save from Oyarzabal again to keep Inter’s hopes alive.

Inter poured forward as they looked for a late winner and they created a stoppage-time chance for Martinez. But the Argentina World Cup winner opted to go for goal himself from a tight angle instead of looking for a team-mate and and he could only lash his shot high over the crossbar.

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